4. Notice of Scoping for Bozrah Sanitary Sewer Extension

Addresses of possible locations: The project is located along Fitchville Road, Stockhouse Road, River Road, Rachel Drive, Commerce Park Road on State Route 87 in Bozrah, and in State Routes 87 and 32 in Franklin. It will connect to the Town of Franklin sewer system on Route 32 in Franklin

Municipalities where proposed action might be located: Bozrah and Franklin

Project Description: The proposed project consists of installing wastewater collection systems in the village section of Bozrah and ultimately connect via Stockhouse Road and Route 87 to the existing Norwich Public Utilities (NPU) sewer on Route 32 in Franklin. The proposed action includes constructing approximately 15,050 linear feet of gravity sanitary sewer, 4 pumping stations, and approximately 3,610 feet of sanitary sewer force main in the Town of Bozrah. The type of construction work required to install sanitary sewer pipes in the road consist of cutting into the roadway, soil excavation and backfilling, and pavement restoration. The Town of Bozrah plans to enter into an intermunicipal agreement with the Town of Franklin to discharge wastewater into the NPU’s collection system. NPU owns and maintains a Combined Sewer Overflow system and Bozrah proposes to discharge up to 200,000 gallons per day design flows from the proposed sanitary sewer service area.
The proposed sanitary sewer service area contains residential areas, as well as areas zoned commercial and industrial that could support potential economic growth consistent with Local and State Plans of Conservation and Development. Additionally, the majority of the Town of Bozrah relies on on-site septic systems for wastewater management and most of these systems were built in the 1980s or earlier. In the Fitchville Village section many of the septic systems are over 60 years old and some serve multi-family housing. Small lot sizes, among other restraints, make most of the Village septic systems impracticable, if not impossible to repair to meet public health code requirements. 

The estimated cost of the project is around 15 million dollars. The Town of Bozrah is awarded with a 5 million dollar grant-in-aid approved by the State’s bond commission on March 31, 2022 and a low interest 40-year USDA loan that will be taken out to fund the remaining 10 million dollars.

Project Map: Click here  to view a map of the project area.

Written comments from the public are welcomed and will be accepted until the close of business on: December 8, 2022.

Any person may ask the sponsoring agency to hold a public scoping meeting by sending such a request to the address below. If a public scoping meeting is requested by 25 or more individuals, or by an association that represents 25 or more members, the sponsoring agency shall schedule a public scoping meeting. Such requests must be made by: November 18, 2022.

Written comments, questions, and/or requests for a public scoping meeting should be sent to:

Name: Anthony Poon

Agency: Department of Energy and Environmental Protection

Address: 79 Elm Street, Hartford CT 06106

E-Mail: Anthony.Poon@ct.gov

Inquiries and requests to view and or copy documents, pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, must be submitted to the sponsoring state agency:

Name: Anthony Poon

Agency: Department of Energy and Environmental Protection

Address: 79 Elm Street, Hartford CT 06106

E-Mail: Anthony.Poon@ct.gov 

What Happens Next: The sponsoring agency will make a determination whether to proceed with preparation of an Environmental Impact Evaluation (EIE) or that the project does not require the preparation of an EIE under the Connecticut Environmental Policy Act (CEPA). A Post-Scoping Notice of its decision will appear in a future edition of the Environmental Monitor.